What Goes Around
by Foxglove Nightshade
Summary: When Nathaniel recieves word from a mysterious demon called 'Karma', he and Karma are forced to confront the Resistance, and Kitty Jones, in order to get everybody's favorite demon back. Pre Ptolemy's Gate
1. Prologue

A/N: HA! I've started a new series now! My last one FLOPPED incredibly, so…just keep swimming; just keep swimming…GAH!

Disclaimer: I don't own anything in the Bartimaus Trilogy, Harry Potter, Finding Nemo, or the song 'One' from A Chorus Line.

Prologue: In Which Karma Is Brought Onto Earth.

Smoke filled the hall, billowing in dark purple plumes from the coals in the braziers set symmetrically around the pentacle in the marble floor. Nathaniel stood by it, calling Bartimaus…calling

The smoke exploded in silver flame, then immediately snuffed out, along with all the light in the room. A light grew in the middle of the room coming from far away, and growing, growing into a shape.

The lamps flickered back on. In the center of the marked circle sat a girl, who looked about Nathaniel's age, except for her long, silver hair and eyes glowing like molten silver, which were shielded by huge round glasses. A huge book lay open on knees, which she was writing in with a long white quill.

"Bartimaus?" Nathaniel stared down at the girl, who was still busily writing.  
"Bar-oh, no." the girl stood up and put her quill and book elsewhere. Brushing off her white robe unnecessarily, she sighed. "He's gone. Vanished, disappeared. Of course, _I_ had to take his calls."

"Who are you?" Nathaniel's eyes widened. A djinn who's name you didn't know was a djinn you couldn't control, and a djinn you couldn't control was as good as destroying London.

"You actually think I'll answer that?" the djinn took off her glasses and sent them to follow the book and quill. "However, you may call me Karma."  
"Karma." Nathaniel blinked at her.

"Yes. That's what I do in my spare time, tell people when their karma is seriously screwed up."

"Yes, but what _are_ you?"

"I'm _Harry Potter_!" her figure morphed until she was standing in the body of an 11-year old boy in black robes. Holding a little stick.

"I've found Flamel! I told you I'd read the name before!" The boy looked at Nathaniel. "Doesn't ring a bell, does it."

In a second, the boy formed into a platter of sushi, with a clownfish flopping next to it. "I found Nemo!" it gasped, then re-formed into the girl in her long silk robes. "You don't get it, do you."

Nathaniel just stared at her.

Karma blinked back, and then stood up straighter. Her figure gained ten years in appearance, and her robe morphed into a tight tuxedo-like outfit, complete with top hat and cane. She started dancing, singing. "One…singular sensation…every little step she takes…one…thrilling combination…every move that she makes…"

Nathaniel rubbed his forehead, and looked at the tap-dancing figure in the center of the circle.

"One smile and suddenly nobody…else…will…do…You know you'll never be lonely with you-know-who!" Karma receded into her normal appearance. "You look intimidated."

"But where's Bartimaus? Nathaniel asked.

"Haven't I _told_ you?" Karma's eyes opened wide.

"No."

"Oh. I thought I had." Karma looked confused for a second, and then chirped, "I don't know."

"You told me _that._"

"I know. I just did. But really, it's the truth!"

"Gone? But djinns don't just disappear, do they?"

"Not without a reason." Karma smirked. "It appears we are traveling in the same direction now, _Nathaniel_."

Nathaniel stood outside of the ring in which Karma stood. Thoughts raced through his head. **Where's Bartimaus? Why is he gone?** But, most importantly, **How does she know my name?**

A/N: Short, I know, but this is just the pilot chapter to see if there's any interest in this. I am looking for ideas for other humans anddjinn and afrits and goblins and foliots and stuff like that, so I'll be taking OCs, maybe six or seven demons and people.

The form is like this (just an example for Karma)

_Name_: Karma  
_Species_: Who knows…? (Djinn, probably)  
_Appearance_ (_most_ _often_ _taken for demons)_: 14-year old girl with silver hair and eyes in a loose white silk robe.  
_Personality_: A joker, but is really quite intelligent and powerful, and if you've done something wrong, she's going to come after you like an angry dog.

Okay, here's the form, so you can copy and paste.

_Name_:  
_Species_:  
_Appearance_:  
_Personality_:

If you want to be a villain, you can put that on too.

Thanx y'all!

-Foxglove-


	2. Chapter 1

A/N: I'm writing my next chappie now. Whoa, this has a lot of interest…I can see why. No Bartimaus romances! The indignity!

Disclaimer: I don't own anything in here but Karma. I don't own the Bartimaus Trilogy, or any of the characters in or mentioned in the realms of the Dead.

oh!desdemona: Ummm…okay then…do you like the story? Do you like my style of writing? Okayyyy…but thanks anyway.

caliboy 130: Thanks for the character.

Kathleen: I know; I can't sing, I can barely talk! Do you mind if I put your charrie in the Resistance?

Anony: Don't worry, I won't I plan on continuing this for a while.

Facilis Descensus Averno: (Nice pen name! Does it mean anything?) I know I shouldn't get mad because you put in some constructive criticism. I know I have to work on my grammatical skill, (It would have helped if you put in some specific examples) but I have a SPELL CHECKER! I use WORD! I truly believe I have very few spelling mistakes. I know I have a propensity to invent words of my own, (See Karma's hushing statement in the Realms of the Dead) so your complaint may be with those. Ain't it awful when people use words that aren't really words?

Chapter 1: In Which Kitty Faces Up to Her Cruel Deed and Journeys to The Realms of the Dead with Nathaniel and Karma to Look For Bartimaus.

"Are you ever going to let me out?" Karma was still facing Nathaniel, who stood wresting with indecision as to keep her in the pentacle or not. "I have to follow you, you know. You called me up, I have to do your bidding."

Nathaniel looked up from the book he was leafing through. "Very well." He put the book aside and undid his own pentacle. Marching over to the pentacle in which Karma was imprisoned, he glared at her. She waved at him a little, then brought her book back, tucking it under her arm.

Nathaniel undid the pentacle, watching Karma's face for any sign of thoughts of attacking him. She simply walked out and surveyed the room.

"Not the prettiest room I ever saw." She glanced over at Nathaniel. "You know, Nathaniel-"

Nathaniel flinched. "_Don't call me that_!" He hissed.

"Why not? What should I call you?" Karma looked bemused for a second.

"John. John Mandrake."

"Urgh. Nathaniel's much better. Anyway, John, I lied to you."

Nathaniel's head snapped up, his mind racing.

"I do know where Bartimaus is. Well, not where he _is_, but I know for a fact that the Resistance did something with him."

"The Resistance." Nathaniel stared at the floor, scuffing out some of the remaining pentacle marks. "That Resistance is going to regret doing that."

"Thank you, dear Mr. Mandrake, for reminding me how much I hate London weather." Karma hid under the edge of a roof. She had followed this Resistance member this far, now she had to see where he was going. The small albino kangaroo rat shook some of the permadrizzle off of its coat, and stared at the boy, who was fiddling with something in his pocket, running over the scenes of the morning in its head.

_"I want you to kidnap Kitty Jones. She's the leader of that Resistance movement, and will know where Bartimaus is." Nathaniel paced the room, occasionally glaring at the djinn sitting in the center of his floor._

_"I can't kidnap! I'm the keeper of karma! I'm supposed to be other people's conscience, and tell them not to kidnap, not kidnap myself!"_

_"Too bad." Nathaniel stared down the djinn. "I called you up, and now you have to obey me. You said so yourself."_

**You idiot! **Karma could have slapped herself. **You could have just left, but now you have to do something, because you promised.**

**You wouldn't have left anyway. **Another voice told her in her head. **You can never leave a story before it ends because you always want to see how it turns out.**

**I could have just asked Fate! **Karma thought back at it.

**You could but you wouldn't. Who wants to know the end of a story in advance anyway?**

**And because of a certian djinn-**

Karma quickly squelched the thought.

The boy pulled out something and shoved it under the backdoor of one of the buildings that lined the alley.

The door was pulled open, and the boy pulled inside. Karma raced in under their feet, scampering into one of the shadowy corners of the room inside.

"Kitty!" the boy hissed.

"Don't you know _anything_?" Kitty hissed at him, covering his mouth.

"Wha es et Ketty?" the boy asked, muffled by her hand.

"Didn't you see that kangaroo rat come running in here?"

"Yeth."

"Are kangaroo rats native to London?" Kitty wiped her hand off on her coat. "No. It was probably a _djinn_! Some magician probably sent it after us!"

Karma put a paw over her eyes. "I _knew_ I should have done a different rat!" she summoned her powers, changing her shape her normal one.

"Um, yes hello. Nice to meet you?" she ventured.

Both Kitty and the other boy looked stunned. Then Kitty lunged at her.

Karma appeared in a different part of the room. "Ah-ah! Temper temper!" she wrapped her arms around Kitty, and vanished again.

Nathaniel jumped to his feet as a panting Karma dragged in a wildly fighting Kitty Jones.

"You did it!" he said, surprised.

"Of course I did! Believe me, I need to sit down." Karma sat down on the floor of the room. Kitty and Nathaniel stared at each other with enmity.

"_You_!" Kitty snapped. "You've kidnapped me! I-I'm going to bring you to court."

"And you've kidnapped my djinn. I have a feeling we're on even ground here." Nathaniel was all business, although he felt discomfited at being caught with a 'dangerous criminal' when he was not in his suit.

Kitty gulped, then licked her lips. "How did you find out?"

"That was me!" Karma waved at her from the floor.

Kitty stood her ground, staring at Nathaniel with fearless eyes. "Very well. Do what you will. Torture me, imprison me. I will never cave."

"Don't be so sure." Nathaniel glared daggers at her. "We're going to do something much worse. When we go look for him, you're coming with us.

The realms of the Dead weren't that much different from real life. It was all walking down a shadowy corridor towards an open door, behind which a light flickered and gleamed. Karma led the way, her long robe and hair making her looks ghost-like. She held up a torch, a long piece of wood with an unearthly light coming off the end.

Kitty stumbled and swore, shocking Nathaniel with her language.

_Don't say another word_. A voice echoed around the room, and in their heads. _Everything in Death listens_.

Nathaniel stared into the blinding white radiance of the light which was Karma. "Is that you, Karma?" he whispered, his throat hoarse.

A man dressed in a gladiator outfit stepped out from behind the huge door.

"It is not their time." He told Karma.

_They are not here to die. They are here to search for one who is here, but is also not dead._ Karma told him.

"Very well." He lowered his head, and sword, and stepped aside. Karma shoved open the door, and behind it there was no light, just a deep darkness that dazzled Kitty and Nathaniel's eyes. Karma stepped forward, followed by the two humans, and stopped. She whispered a few words, and her torch faded, showing her innocent 14-year old face.

"Follow me." She told them, and ran ahead.

The light of the torch she held flickered over the few figures ahead of them. Karma slowed down as she passed the grazing figure of a deer. "Look around as much as you can. But be careful of what you say. If the Dead could be convinced that they wanted to return to the living…awful." Karma made a face. "Excuse me!" she went over to one of the Dead, a man with long red hair and worn leather armor. "Has a djinn been thrown in here?"

He looked at her sorrowfully, then turned away and waded into the infinite darkness beyond the reach of the torch Karma held.

"Well _excuse _me." Karma snapped at his retreating back, a bit of her spirit returning back into her voice. "See, that's what happens when you die with regret. You always wish you could have done something differently, and you mope around for all eternity, spoiling your afterlife. Live your life with no regrets! Excuse me…and he's gone." She watched a man in a top hat and a stiff black suit. "I won't call you _honest_ anymore!" she yelled after him. "Jeez, I'd have better luck talking to somebody else!"

"Are you _sure_ Bartimaus is here?" Nathaniel asked Kitty.

"Afishyshshfish!" Karma squeaked hurriedly. "Fishush!"

"Yes, I am. This is where we sent him. How come you can talk and we can't?" Kitty said.

"Because you're _human_!" Karma put a degrading emphasis on the 'human'.

"And?"

"If _we_ can get in, then _they_ can get out! Do you want them to realize that?" Karma motioned back at the way they came and around them as the dead floated by. "Excuse me!" she flagged a woman with curly white-blonde hair down. "You haven't seen a djinn, have you?"

"No, sweetie, not recently." The woman said, and was about to say more when she was dragged off by the man she was with.

"Now _there's_ a person who _should_ be dead with regrets." Karma said pointedly. "I never liked actresses. Especially not ones who had mammalian appendages so large it was almost inhuman. I had to go after her a couple of times."

She finally managed to get one of the Dead to stop and asked him about Bartimaus.

"Why no. There was one here a bit ago…a day? Maybe a week."

"What happened to him?" Karma asked.

"I don't know. Somebody came and took him out, probably. He's not here now."

"Thank you! Thank you! THANK YOU!" Karma called to him, as the spirit floated away. She turned to Kitty. "You have the watch. How long have we been here?"

Nathaniel stared after the spirit. "You know, that spirit was dressed almost exactly like that boy you showed me. What was his name…Harry Potter."

Kitty opened the gargantuan golden pocket watch and examined it. "Three quarters of an hour."

"Really? We have to hurry back!" Karma started walking back the way that they had come. As Nathaniel glanced around, he felt himself filled with a desire to stay here, to rest in the peaceful blackness for all of eternity. Shaking himself, he followed Karma, away from the spirits, away from the blackness.

A lingering spirit, a little girl with dark curls and a plaintive expression, blew out in front of Karma. "Have you seen my father? I've lost him."

"No, I'm sorry." Karma stared down at her feet. "I haven't"

A/N: Everybody who knows who the people I used in the realms of the dead are gets cookies! Anyway, I _still_ need people to give me OCs for lesser demons. Just because someone isn't a djinn doesn't mean that they'll have a smaller part! Size is relative.


	3. Chapter 2

A/N: Here are the spirits that I used. **Mini disclaimer: I don't own any of them!**  
Deer: Bambi's mother  
Man with leather armor: Boromir  
Man in suit: Abraham Lincoln  
Woman with white-blonde hair: Marilyn Monroe  
Boy who is dressed like Harry Potter: Cedric Diggory  
Girl with curls: Anne Frank (Additional thing: she couldn't find her father because he's still alive!)

Disclaimer: I DON'T OWN IT! I don't own the Bartimaeus Trilogy! I DON'T! REALLY!

Kathleen: I'm glad I have at least one fan!

Oh!desdemona: Why thank you. That certainly cleared things up.

Chapter 2: In Which A Certain Trio Venture Into A Part of London and Are Sent Places…

"I don't get it." Kitty told Karma, who was sitting in a nonexistent chair stitching at a pile of white silk. "That trip confused me. What-"

"It confuses a lot of people.' Karma waved her needle about airily. "Usually it takes the Dead a few centuries to get the hang of it."

"No, not that." Kitty bit her bottom lip. "You…changed."

"I did?" Karma looked dumbfounded.

"Yes, you did. You got more serious. When we were approaching the realms of the Dead, you were blinding light, and I heard your voice in my head!"

"I'm not two faced." Karma, for the first time, did not meet Kitty's eyes. She stared uncomfortably at the pile of white silk she held, then sent it elsewhere. Making a futile attempt at humor, she added: "I'm many faced." Staring around herself, looking for something she could comment on, she noticed Nathaniel standing at a desk. "What are you doing, Na-Mr. Mandrake?"

Nathaniel jumped and spun away from the desk, which a book rested on and looked at the two girls, one dressed in a flowing silk robe and seated on nothing, the other dressed in average London clothes and sitting on the edge of an uncomfortable splintery chair. "Nothing."

"You can't be doing nothing, nobody ever does nothing." Karma told him.

"Except when they're dead." Kitty countered, without thinking of the trip they had just taken.

"On the contrary Kitty." Karma shook her head sagely. "When people are dead, they're doing something. They're _being dead_!"

"What are you, Karma?" Nathaniel picked up his book, closed it, and looked at the djinn he was questioning.

"Me? Nothing."

"This is one of the worst neighborhoods in London." Nathaniel wrinkled his nose and pulled his coat tighter around himself against the brisk autumn wind.

'I beg your pardon!" Kitty snapped, snapping her head up to glare at Nathaniel. "I grew up here!"

"Exactly."

Kitty looked as if she would very much like to slap Nathaniel, but restrained herself at the sound of Karma's voice.

"Children, children!" Karma had traded her usual silk robes for what looked like a men's white dress shirt and a pair of tight white jeans tucked into knee-high black leather boots. This entire ensemble was topped with a long black woolen trench coat, which both Kitty and Nathaniel had been staring at enviously for some time now. "This is no time to be fighting! We might have to make a run for it."

"So, tell me. _Why_ are we here?"

"Only one other person knew where Bartimaeus was hiding. She was part of the Resistance for a while…very fine girl. Except she was a magician, so I sent her to live here with my aunt. I don't know what happened to her after that." Kitty explained.

"You're so heartless" Nathaniel told the girl, who seemed entirely unfazed by her explanation.

"Listen to the pot calling the kettle black!" Kitty hissed back at him.

"_I'm _not heartless!" Nathaniel protested. "That's just magicians like Lovelace giving the rest of us a bad name! Am I heartless, Karma?"

Karma nodded with mock sadness.

"Huh." Nathaniel stuck up his nose and continued, stepping over the corpse of a rat without even noticing it.

The small group continued on their way, avoiding scattered rubbish and muddy puddles.

Behind them, the rat shook itself, ridding itself of the mud and dirt that had accumulated on its fur. Looking at the footprints of the people who had stood around it, it followed the group.

"Which house is it?" Nathaniel asked, looking at the many fronts of houses.

"It's-" Kitty didn't have time to finish her words when she was thrown forwards by the shock of a blast of magic from behind. The shock nearly flattened Karma and Kitty, but Nathaniel bore the full brunt of the Detonation. He collapsed, slowly falling forwards onto his knees. Little flickers of lightning played around his chest, and his hair was slightly scorched.

"Of course." Karma sighed. She turned to the djinn who had thrown the lightning. "You really _had_ to do that, didn't you?"

It was something out of your nightmares. It was one of those things that are waiting around that corner you're about to pass. It was one of those things that are chasing you when you're too scared to run, too scared to do anything but stand and know that _something_ is coming for you. A black shape loomed up against the sun.

Karma stared at the shape for a second, then started flicking through the plains. On the first six planes it was simply a blot, but as it moved around, she could finally catch a glimpse of it. Long tentacles. Glittering steel. Blades shining. "Feioan." She whispered.

"Who?" Kitty was shielding her eyes.

"Feioan." Karma stared up at the beast, her eyes wide with the first true fear that Kitty had seen. "He's an afrit. No, he's _the_ afrit. The most powerful one of them all."

"And what does _that_ mean?" Kitty took a step back.

"You want to know what it means? It means RUN FOR YOUR LIFE!" Karma bellowed like an angry bull and melted into a sleek white jackrabbit with a black back and hind feet. As she sprinted away, the afrit bent over and shot a Detonation at her. Karma flicked into a salamander instantaneously, not minding the flames that licked round her scaly body. Kitty stood frozen with fear. Satisfied that the djinni was incinerated, the afrit turned slowly to her.

"Duck!" a squeaky little voice in her ear jolted the girl into action. She dove to the ground as another Detonation, cracking with hidden lightning, crashed into the wall behind her, blowing it to smithereens.

The afrit seemed to pause, and scooped Kitty up in one tentacle. It held her up to its face, and stared at her out of two huge yellow eyes.

"Uh-oh." Karma guessed what it was looking for and dove off of Kitty's neck, spreading wings. As she fluttered overhead, a small barn swallow, she felt a pulling…a tugging…someone was calling her. **I should have let Nathaniel know my name! **she thought in desperation. **Someone who does know it is calling me!**

Caught in midair, the barn swallow fought against the summons. She writhed, changing shape from one bird into another, but the summons were too strong.

A rain of feathers erupted in midair, sprinkling down onto Kitty. Karma was gone, Nathaniel was knocked out, even dead, and Kitty was utterly alone. The afrit grinned, holding her up to its steel toothed mouth.

A/N: Ha ha! I actually put in a real cliffie this time! I know it was a short(ish) chapter, but I'll WRITE MORE! I have some great ideas for how this will work out! While you're thinking, I'll put these few questions for you to ponder: How did Karma know so much about the realms of the Dead? Who is calling her? What is her true name? Is the person calling her the same one who has captured Bartimaeus? Get those answers and more next chappie! Now for a brief word from our sponsor…


	4. Chapter 3

A/N: My (long-awaited) tell-all chapter! Believe me, a lot of things will be cleared up here (and more questions will arise! Mua-ha-ha-ha!)

Disclaimer: I do not own anything in here. Except for the plot. I don't even own Callidus or Milo! (Yup, they're OCs I didn't make up)

TobiasHawk: Sorry, I have already decided who the charrie is who's calling Karma, but I'll use yours, too.

Yggdrasil: Thanks for all the characters! I have some intresting creative neurons flashing right now…

Felix von renselear: Well hello (AAAAAAAAAAH! CORPSE BRIDE IS THE BEST MOVIE EVER!). You're right. If you ever wanted to talk to me you could just run down the hall. Or walk. Or float.

Chapter 3: In Which Karma's True Identity is Revealed and Another Djinn Makes an Entrance.

Karma took a moment to arrange her features. **Let's see. Fangs…check. Talons…check. Glowing red eyes…check. Frightening scaly body…**

A huge bang erupted in the center of the pentacle. The pentacle was lit up for a few seconds, until an eruption of green smoke and river water exploded from a point somewhere in the middle of the air. Karma could hear her summoner hacking and wheezing, either from the smoke or the stench of the water.

"Demon…" the unseen person choked out, "I charge you to-"_ wheeze_- "Tell me your name!"

Karma let the smoke fall, showing her appearance. She stood as an alligator, but on her hind legs, dressed in a worn old tunic. Towering nine feet high, her appearance was intimidating to some, but not to the person who stood in the smaller adjacent pentacle. As soon as she could see the face of that person, she gasped. "_You!_" she snapped with disgust. _"You!"_

"I charge you to tell me your name!" the person snapped.

"You _know_ my name." Karma said calculatingly.

"Very well." The magician sighed. "_Queezle_."

Karma, actually Queezle, winced. Her gamble hadn't paid off. She had prayed that someone had missummoned her. Most people here believed she had perished in a golem's attack on the British Museum, but there were a few who knew the truth, that Queezle had been freed by the well-timed death of her master.

"Yes?" she sighed. "What is your charge?"

The person in the other pentacle glanced around uneasily. She, for it was a woman, leaned forwards. "Listen closely. I want you to-"

Nathaniel groaned. He rolled over onto his side and looked around at the surroundings. He was in a room, brightly lit, with the sun shining directly onto his face. "Where am I?" he asked nobody in particular.

"_You_ are inside the house of Hazel Jones after being beaten up by aninth level afrit. Congratulations. I'm amazed you still have any hair left after being blasted by one of his detonations."

"Oh no." Nathaniel recognized that voice. He rolled over. "No wonder I feel like I was kicked in the stomach."

His djinn looked down at him. "No wonder. What were you doing anyway?"

"None of your business." Nathaniel groaned.

"Anyway, even if you did, you-"

"Callidus."

"Yes?"

"Shut up."

"As you wish, master."

"Where's Kitty and Karma?" Nathaniel rubbed his eyes and sat up. Callidus said nothing. "What?"

"You told me to shut up." Callidus whispered.

"You know, If I wasn't feeling this awful, you'd be stippled for that." Nathaniel glared at the djinn who was staring at him impudently.

"Ah, but you're not going to, are you?"

As Karma/Queezle followed her new mistress around the town, in the guise of a large white eagle, she scanned the crowds. **This is sad. **She thought. **I hope nobody I know is here. I will never recover.**

Her master stalked through the crowd, attracting glances from all who passed.

**I don't see why she needs a djinni. If she ever was attacked in the street, she would have all the young men in London to protect her.**

"Miss Farrar!" one of those young men appeared at the doorway of one of those of the more upper-class supply shops. "Miss Farrar!"

"Miss Farrar." Queezle said softly to herself. "Where have I heard that name before?"

"Ye-oh." Miss Farrar looked at the young man. "Hello, Mr. Worthy."

"Or, may I venture, _Jane._"

"Jane!" Queezle gasped. She knew who her mistress was!

"What is it, Mr. Worthy?"

"Do I need a reason to say hello to the most beautiful girl in the street?"

Queezle resisted the urge to gag.

Jane flushed. "Mr. Worthy! I know I'm scarcely a beauty, but…"

"My dear Jane, _scarcely_ a beauty is like saying a diamond is just a rock!"

"This. Is. Nauseating." Queezle whispered.

Jane heard that, and frowned, twisting her mouth into a little red bow.

"Excuse me for a second, Mr. Worthy." She smiled, although it was a forced smile, and turned away from the young man.

"Go _home_. Now. Go directly home- no sidetracks, and wait for me there."

"Whatever you say, mistress." Queezle winked at her, and took off. Soaring through the thick London smog, she shot back to her house. Castle. Monumentous abode. Thing. Sailing over to one of the gargantuan windows, she flapped her wings and rode a thermal right into the window.

Flapping up to the ledge outside, Queezle shoved the window open and jumped inside, turning into the tried-and-true white kangaroo rat. She skittered over to the crackling fire, and warmed her paws on it. A rumbling started. Thunder? No, it was too regular to be thunder. She looked up…

"This is just not my lucky day is it?" Queezle sighed.

A huge black cat sat next to her, smiling at her and purring. Queezle immediately changed back into an eagle.

"Hello." The cat purred. "I'm Milo."

Queezle made no reply.

"In cases such as these the typical reply is 'Well hello, my name is _ahem_. How are you?" Milo half closed his eyes, looking both exasperated and bored.

"Um. Um. Well, hello there, my name is _ahem_. How are you?"

Milo rolled her (I take it she's a she) eyes. "Sarcasm. It's a fine art."

"Oh." Queezle said, feeling stupid. "I just lost about half my brain cells on that window. I'm Queezle."

"That's nice." Milo's eyes widened for a second, then carefully replied, "That's a very nice name."

A/N: So what do you think? Should I keep going? If I do, I'm not going to be updating so often. School, you know? I'm barely going to have writing time, what with all the mad parties going on in the dorms. Yup, that's me, being shunted off to boarding school. Boarding schools the man. You know who else is the man? Miss Mullins, down the hall, she's the man.

Okay, I'll just stop while I'm behind.

Gotta stay flahahahahah til I dahahahahah…

That's it, I'm done.

Oh, yeah, and what part should I try out for in the school play? It's Alice in Wonderland. Everyone either says I should be the March Hare or the Cheshire Cat. I NEED ADVICE!


	5. Chapter 4

A/N: And here we go again! I have decided I am going to update all my Fanfiction and Fictionpress stories during Winter Break, and I only have three more stories to go! So please excuse it if I make this chappie a bit short. I'm SORRY!

LuckyRatTail; Well, the ballots are in, the casting is done, and I am…drum roll…the MARCH HARE! Not quite as well known as the Mad Hatter, but still mad (and incredibly funny!) nonetheless. Not that I wouldn't mind being the Cheshire Cat, but it actually has a smaller part (and is a lot less funny!). And the girl they cast as the Cheshire Cat is so incredibly perfect at it, I don't mind!

TheWatcherandReader: Creative neurons flashing…drums nails on desk…A coin hmmm?

Anony: I know. Shocking, isn't it. Well, you know something…I GO TO BOARDING SCHOOL! I have about ten minutes a day to write, so I can't update as often as I do during the summer (or during vacations).

* * *

Chapter 4: In Which We Learn More of Kitty

Kitty covered her eyes, expecting at any minute to be ripped to shreds by the afrit. Instead, she felt herself being carried off by the beast, as it shrank, to the form of a gigantic, fanciful griffin. She cracked her eyes open a little bit, until the sight of flying over London gave her vertigo, and she had to squinch her eyes closed, and swallow several times to calm her stomach. It was like being on a high-powered roller coaster, only with no seatbelts, and PLENTY of vertical drops and corkscrews.

Clinging onto the griffin's claws, she pictures the faces of those close to her. It was surprising how few faces turned up…there were her childhood friends, her parents (who meant well even I they didn't understand her), her friends from the Resistance, Karma (even though she had kidnapped her, Karma had a way of working into everybody's heart), and finally…Nathaniel! She opened her eyes, shocked, and quickly closed them again at the sight of a closed window looming in front of her.

_Smack!_ Both the griffin and Kitty hit the window, and slid off of it, senseless.

"They really ought to get that window replaced. Put in stained glass or something." Milo glanced up at the window in question. This isn't the first time that a djinn has run into it."

"Actually, technically, that was an Afrit." Queezle blinked a little, and then transformed to be a white cat.

Milo glared at her a second, then went to open the window. The afrit sat up, shook its head a little, and hopped inside, still carrying its burden.

"Kitty!" Queezle gasped. This was getting convoluted.

"What's the matter? Recognize her?" Milo jumped off the windowledge.

"Me? No." Queezle lied swiftly. "I just was wondering- does kidnapping happen often here?"

"Pretty regularly, actually." Milo did not answer her question, but instead it was answered by an omniscient narrator.

"Nickle. I know you're there." Milo stated. "Come on, show yourself!"

A coin suddenly appeared at his feet. "You're no fun Milo." It drawled.

Queezle blinked at the coin. "And who is this?"

"This is Nickle. He's yet another one of the djinnis in this house." Milo batted at the coin, but it didn't move.

"I'm surprised. I thought Jane would be after more powerful djinnis than me, and that the ones she had would be more powerful than a coin.

Milo looked at her, and winked, her eyes flashing green in the light. "You'd be surprised."

* * *

Kitty sat up. She was lying on a bed, in a luxurious room. She looked around, trying to figure out where she was, when the door opened. A figure entered, a familiar figure…

"Nathaniel!" she cried. "I thought that afrit killed you!"

Nathaniel put down the tray. "No, it takes much more than a detonation to kill someone like me."

Kitty flung her arms around him. "What happened to Karma? She vanished!"

"Karma?" Nathaniel shrugged. "She's fine."

"That's good." Kitty sat back down on the bed. "Nathaniel, I have something to tell you."

"Really?" Nathanel smiled gently at her. "Have a drink. You must be thirsty."

Kitty picked up the cup sitting on the tray, and took a sip. "Nathaniel, I've been thinking. I realized that the magicians may not be in the right, but the Resistance might not be completely in the right either. There may be some cruel magicians, but there can be good ones, too." She took another sip. "Nathaniel, I'-_Love you_ her brain was trying to say, but she held it back. "Would trust you with my life, if it came down to it."

She shook her head, and placed the cup back on the tray. "Phew. I'm more tired than I thought I was. I think I might just sleep a little more."

She laid back and continued chattering, sleepiness intoxicating her. "You're like a cat, you know? When I was in the Resistance, I plotted to kill you several times…but you always survived. It's like you have nine lives-"

Kitty's eyes rolled back in her head, and she collapsed on her pillow.

Nathaniel reached over and stroked her hair. His eyes flashed green. "You'd be surprised."

* * *

A/N: Wow. I even surprised myself with that chapter. It started out with me having a terrible case of writer's block…just writing a few sentences here and there, which is why the first section is SO awful. Oh well. Sighs. But with the last part, I was inspired! (If I do say so myself!) 


	6. Chapter 5

A/N: Okay, now here is a WORLD CHANGING part! (Well, not really, but…)

Here it is! Dun-dun-dun-dun! (And just so you know, I'm just going to continue as if Ptolemy's Gate never happened, because I started it before the book came out.

Oh!desdemona: I'm sorry I made Milo so evil. It had to be done. I needed someone evil. No! Stop throwing things at me! runs out of room hunched over

And Nyana: Milo is Nathaniel to Kitty, and Nathaniel (the real one) will show up later in this chapter.

Chapter 6: In Which a Plan Is Hatched

* * *

Queezle started washing her paw, and glaring at Nickle. "So, who else is here? Anybody famous? Like me?"

Nickle would have rolled his eyes, if he had had any. "No, none like you, your majesty."

"Of course not. You still haven't answered my question. Nickle? Nickle? Wake UP, Nickle!"

The coin only grunted, and continued it's (obviously fake) snoring.

"You know what you have to do when things get like this?" Queezle popped her head up. An unusual girl stood in the doorway, obviously a djinn. She walked over to Nickle, and picked up the coin, who immediately shrank into a smaller size, more like a dime than a quarter. "Toss him in the fire!" she yelled at the rapidly shrinking coin, then put him in her pocket. She looked over at Queezle. "Good to meet you." She said. "I'm Kako."

Queezle transformed into her 'Karma' figure, and held out her hand. "I'm Queezle."

"Do you know who this is?" Nickle shouted out of Kako's pocket. "This is the master summoner! She could help you find-"

Kako clapped her hand over the pocket, sealing the djinni's voice out.

Queezle stared down at the pocket, then at Kako's face. "Really?"

* * *

Nathaniel stared down at his ribs. A trail of burns spread across them. Shaking his head, he pulled a borrowed shirt over his head, and proceeded to climb down the stairs, leaning on the wall. 

"Well look who's up." Mabel Jones, Kitty's aunt, glanced up at him.

Nathaniel blinked at the crowded kitchen, and almost backed back up the stairs, but Callidus pushed him forward.

"What were you _thinking_! He's a _magician_! And he has a _demon_!" a boy jumped up, from the kitchen table and drew a silver sword.

Callidus shrank back, and transformed into a nondescript mouse.

"Achetti, _please_. No murdering in the house on Tuesdays." A young girl stood up, and extended her hand towards Nathaniel. "It's a pleasure to meet you, sir. What is your name?"

"Na-John. John Mandrake."

"Very well." Her eyes sparkled. "Come sit down, Na-John."

He continued down the stairs. Callidus stuck close behind him. "Tuesdays?"

"Yes, they _are_ permitted on Fridays by appointment only." She extended her hand out to him. "Greetings. My name is Laura."

Nathaniel shook her hand, his eyes flicking back to the boy, who still stood holding his sword, pointing it directly at Callidus. "Hello…"

Laura sighed, and waved at the boy. "Achetti, put your sword down. There's no use in killing someone here in the kitchen. And I _will_ make you clean it up afterwards."

* * *

"Now, I understand that Bartimaus is sent somewhere 'else'." Kako tapped her nails on the table she was sitting next to, putting smoldering scratches in the shining veneer. "Do you know where this 'other place' he was sent to is?" 

Queezle shook her head.

"All right. Now, that will complicate things quite a bit. We'll have to go to one of the major summoning centers."

Queezle nodded, not sure what the right answer would be.

"I would suggest Tara." Kako stood up, and the chair melted into ash where she had just been sitting. "I suggest you find some way to get Janey dear to let us go to Ireland…we have a spirit to summon."

A/N: I know it took a while, but I actually have a good idea of where this is going!


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: I know, I know. It's been a while. Don't worry, Watcher, Nickle will definitely be part of the little Irish venture.

Disclaimer: Not mine. None of it. Not mine.

Disclaimer remix: I may not use all of the OCs, because I already have more characters than I can keep track of, so try not to feel bad…yours may show up later in the story.

Chapter 6: In which an unhappy trio goes to Tara, and Nathaniel discovers Karma's true identity (finally!).

* * *

Nathaniel sat at the breakfast table, fiddling with a pear, and locked in an intense staring match with Achetti. Callidus, who among those three was the most in danger, was sitting, wolfing down some porridge.

Laura snapped her fingers. A carving knife whistled through the air, and landed, buried an inch deep in the table. "Now, once you two have finished hating each other, you can think up a plan. If we know who that afrit is working for, we can figure out where Kitty's at."

"And Karma." Nathaniel, who had jolted back in his chair, added.

"See! This monster cares more about his djinn than real people!" Achetti snapped.

Nathaniel leaned forwards, and pulled the knife out of the table. "For your information." He said quietly, and coldly, reminding all in the kitchen that this teenager was an experienced magician. "Karma is not 'my' djinn. If she was, she would either be here now, or be dead, and I feel she is neither. And I do care about Kitty, more than any of you EVER could."

Laura glanced from Achetti to Nathaniel, and reached forward, plucking the knife from Nathaniel's hand. "John, when I told Achetti no murdering, it went with you, too."

Nathaniel glared at her, and without a word, stood up and left the room. Callidus, realizing he was now in Achetti's line of fire, picked up the porridge, and followed Nathaniel.

* * *

"I feel like an idiot." Queezle tapped her throat, to reassure herself that Nickle was still on the chain around her neck. She had assumed the form of a frazzled nanny, dragging a little child with red hair and unusual golden eyes through the London streets. "I have no idea where we're going."

"You're going to the train station, to Tara." Snapped Kako. "The fastest train possible."

Queezle looked around, and hurried on.

"And we passed the train station ten minutes ago." Kako said, self-satisfied.

"Why _you_…" Queezle spun around, and collided with a person leaving a shop. He fell to the ground, and Queezle bent down to help him up…but stopped. "Nath-John! You're still alive!"

"And who are you?" Nathaniel glared up at the nanny bending over him.

"Karma!" the djinn bent over him. "I- I may have a way to get Bartimaeus! I'm going to Tara to…"

"Queezle? Are you coming?" Kako marched over to her.

"Queezle?" Nathaniel asked.

Nickle entered into the conversation. "I don't think you should tell him anything. How can you know you can trust him, Queezle?"

"You? You're Queezle?"

"Oh, brilliant, stranger." Kako snapped sarcastically.

"He's part of this!" Queezle said to Nickle.

"Then why don't you help him off the ground?"

"Oh. Right." Queezle gave Nathaniel a hand up off of the ground.

"I need an explaination, Karma." Nathaniel kept a firm hold on her sleeve.

* * *

As the train pulled away from the station, Queezle sighed, and sank back into her seat. The rocking of the train was soothing, and Kako was quiet for once, staring out the window. She let her thoughts drift, but they all kept returning to the same thing. Soon, she would see Bartimaeus again.

* * *

A/N: Okay, that takes the prize for the worst chapter I've ever written. EVER! And one of the shortest, too. 


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